SOUND OF SUNFOREST

Oddly bracketed here as 'Psychedelic / Space-Rock' - a very misleading label(sorry guys) - this sun-kissed folk-pop curio has become something of a cult favourite over the years thanks mainly to the catchy acoustica of 'Magician In The Mountain', a breezy two-minute workout that has featured on many a psychedelic compilation. A trio, Sunforest were a short- lived outfit made up of Terry Tucker(keyboards, harpsichord, vocals), Freya Houge(guitar, banjo, vocals) and Erika Eigen(percussion, vocals) and this brisk, self-titled effort from 1969 proved to be their only release, featuring as it does a succession of softly-peddled folk-pop nuggets tinged with rainy-day psychedelia. Undoubtedly 'Magician In The Mountain' is the highlight, yet as an actual album this is surprisingly good, the bulk of the material exuding a loose, low-slung, lightly-ambling hippie vibe, though don't go expecting any complex instrumental flourishes. This is progressive folk in the loosest sense of the term. An archetypal late-sixties relic, fans of the poppier side of psychedelia - just think Donovan, Incredible String Band or Jethro Tull's folkier moments - should lap this up. STEFAN TURNER, STOKE NEWINGTON, 2012